Seoul Halloween Horror: South Korean actor Lee Ji Jan passes away before the release of debut drama

South Korea experienced one of the worst stampedes in history, claiming more than 154 lives on October 29. Producer 101 Season 2 contestant Lee Ji-han was among those killed in the tragedy. 

The tragedy occurred after many people went to Itaewon, a neighborhood near Seoul, for Halloween celebrations. The death of Lee Ji-han has been confirmed by his agency.

Lee Ji-han’s agency, in a statement, said, “It’s true that Lee Ji Han passed away due to the accident in Itaewon on October 29. We also hoped that it wasn’t true, and we were very shocked to hear the news. The family is suffering immense grief right now, so we are being very cautious. May he rest in peace.” 

 

 

 

 

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Park Hee-Seok and Kim Do-Hyun, among others, expressed their condolences on Instagram. According to reports, Lee Ji Han's funeral will take place on November 1.

Who was Lee Ji-han

Lee Jihan, who was born on August 3, 1998, made his first big move in the Korean entertainment industry by competing in the second season of the Korean singing competition Produce 101, in which 101 K-pop hopefuls competed for a spot in an 11-member boy band.

Lee Ji Han in Produce 101 Season 2

In 2017, Lee Ji-han made his public debut by appearing on Mnet's survival show Produce 101 Season 2. His burning passion for youth, in particular, wowed the audience. Lee Ji-han finished last (No.98, excluding three trainees who voluntarily left the show) and was nearly the first contestant to be eliminated from "Produce 101 Season 2." However, he demonstrated efforts to achieve big dreams that were just as passionate as the first.

Fans slams Production team after Lee Ji Han’s death

Netizens panned the production team at the time, saying, “He was in Class F then went up to Class B during the re-evaluation but still got too little attention and had nearly no screen time. PD, you should reflect on yourself!”, “I’m a fan of other trainees but I feel so sorry for him”, “He’s the victim of PD’s pick”, “I really hate the PD”, “He was the center of ‘Be Mine’ but didn’t get any screen time? OMG”, “He was one of the members who recorded ‘PICK ME’ but they gave him no screen time and eventually eliminated him. I’ll pray for the day when I will able to see you shine brightly on the stage”, “Mnet is bad”, “Why did he get eliminated?”, “He’s a victim of Mnet’s editing”, etc. 

Co-stars condole death of Lee Ji Han

Lee Ji Han's death was first made public when several of his "Produce 101 Season 2" castmates, including Park Hee Seok, Kim Do Hyun, and Cho Jin Hyung, took to Instagram to share the tragic news.

They wrote, “Ji Han has left this world and gone to a comfortable place. We ask that you say goodbye to him on his final path.”